26 and 29. HHI $165k. $85k savings, $170k 401k, $40k other investments. We own a home.

I'm 32; DH is 33. HHI is around $300K. Savings--including 401Ks and cash--is just above $200K. We both max out our retirement contributions.

We already bought and did 90% of the renovations we wanted on a home we love. We have one kid and don't plan to have another.

We feel like we're on track to realize our savings goals, assuming nothing drastically changes.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Delay instant gratification. This includes kids. I really can't stress this enough.

We didn't start having kids until our late 30s because we wanted to purchase a house, whittle away my students loans (still not paid off but the end is in sight), get our retirement investments on the right track, and get a few big promotions.

We are now in a great place to start a small family. The first child will be born this fall. We'll take 6-12 months with the first kid and re-assess.

Again, delay that instant gratification. This economy is unforgiving if you don't have a tech job with crazy salary+benefits or family money.

We had kids in mid 20s and early 30s.

We have a HHI of $700k (split pretty evenly). When we had our first, it was $160k.

We max out retirement. We are in a great place to already have started our family.

Great for you. There's a lot more families in America who had kids too young, didn't go to college, and work paycheck to paycheck. They are members of my family and they far outnumber the $700K HHI households.

By my mid 20s my college years were years behind me. What are you talking about.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Delay instant gratification. This includes kids. I really can't stress this enough.

We didn't start having kids until our late 30s because we wanted to purchase a house, whittle away my students loans (still not paid off but the end is in sight), get our retirement investments on the right track, and get a few big promotions.

We are now in a great place to start a small family. The first child will be born this fall. We'll take 6-12 months with the first kid and re-assess.

Again, delay that instant gratification. This economy is unforgiving if you don't have a tech job with crazy salary+benefits or family money.

We had kids in mid 20s and early 30s.

We have a HHI of $700k (split pretty evenly). When we had our first, it was $160k.

We max out retirement. We are in a great place to already have started our family.

Great for you. There's a lot more families in America who had kids too young, didn't go to college, and work paycheck to paycheck. They are members of my family and they far outnumber the $700K HHI households.

A person can go to college and graduate school and still have kids in their 20s. I did.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Delay instant gratification. This includes kids. I really can't stress this enough.

We didn't start having kids until our late 30s because we wanted to purchase a house, whittle away my students loans (still not paid off but the end is in sight), get our retirement investments on the right track, and get a few big promotions.

We are now in a great place to start a small family. The first child will be born this fall. We'll take 6-12 months with the first kid and re-assess.

Again, delay that instant gratification. This economy is unforgiving if you don't have a tech job with crazy salary+benefits or family money.

We had kids in mid 20s and early 30s.

We have a HHI of $700k (split pretty evenly). When we had our first, it was $160k.

We max out retirement. We are in a great place to already have started our family.

Great for you. There's a lot more families in America who had kids too young, didn't go to college, and work paycheck to paycheck. They are members of my family and they far outnumber the $700K HHI households.

Anonymous wrote:Delay instant gratification. This includes kids. I really can't stress this enough.

We didn't start having kids until our late 30s because we wanted to purchase a house, whittle away my students loans (still not paid off but the end is in sight), get our retirement investments on the right track, and get a few big promotions.

We are now in a great place to start a small family. The first child will be born this fall. We'll take 6-12 months with the first kid and re-assess.

Again, delay that instant gratification. This economy is unforgiving if you don't have a tech job with crazy salary+benefits or family money.

We had kids in mid 20s and early 30s.

We have a HHI of $700k (split pretty evenly). When we had our first, it was $160k.

We max out retirement. We are in a great place to already have started our family.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Delay instant gratification. This includes kids. I really can't stress this enough.

We didn't start having kids until our late 30s because we wanted to purchase a house, whittle away my students loans (still not paid off but the end is in sight), get our retirement investments on the right track, and get a few big promotions.

We are now in a great place to start a small family. The first child will be born this fall. We'll take 6-12 months with the first kid and re-assess.

Again, delay that instant gratification. This economy is unforgiving if you don't have a tech job with crazy salary+benefits or family money.

I disagree with this. There is very often no “right” time to have kids. Many people decide to wait until their late 30s and struggle with infertility or other negative health issues. Have children when you can and make it work. I was warned by my OB in my early 20s that I may have problems with my fertility and so I had my first child in my late 20s, during law school, no less. But I was married and my husband had a decent job and we made it work. At 34 and 39 we are able to max out our retirement accounts and are on schedule to retire when we want to.

+1...don't delay kids. No one can count on being fertile in their late 30s. I had my kids at 28 and 30, in DC no less. So glad I wont have to go through maternity leave and baby phase when I'm 39. I'm 33 now and look forward to retiring at 57.

Anonymous wrote:Delay instant gratification. This includes kids. I really can't stress this enough.

We didn't start having kids until our late 30s because we wanted to purchase a house, whittle away my students loans (still not paid off but the end is in sight), get our retirement investments on the right track, and get a few big promotions.

We are now in a great place to start a small family. The first child will be born this fall. We'll take 6-12 months with the first kid and re-assess.

Again, delay that instant gratification. This economy is unforgiving if you don't have a tech job with crazy salary+benefits or family money.

I disagree with this. There is very often no “right” time to have kids. Many people decide to wait until their late 30s and struggle with infertility or other negative health issues. Have children when you can and make it work. I was warned by my OB in my early 20s that I may have problems with my fertility and so I had my first child in my late 20s, during law school, no less. But I was married and my husband had a decent job and we made it work. At 34 and 39 we are able to max out our retirement accounts and are on schedule to retire when we want to.

Delay instant gratification. This includes kids. I really can't stress this enough.

We didn't start having kids until our late 30s because we wanted to purchase a house, whittle away my students loans (still not paid off but the end is in sight), get our retirement investments on the right track, and get a few big promotions.

We are now in a great place to start a small family. The first child will be born this fall. We'll take 6-12 months with the first kid and re-assess.

Again, delay that instant gratification. This economy is unforgiving if you don't have a tech job with crazy salary+benefits or family money.

How many times will this question be asked? There was a thread on this just a few weeks ago, bump that one!

We are 34...our HHI is 270K, we have about 150K in savings and about 320K in 401K, and about 550K left to pay on our mortgage (and about 170K of equity maybe). I gotta say though, this is probably the decade in which income goes up most drastically, so a few years can make a lot of difference.

We are both 30, no kids (and will not have any). HHI is ~$210k depending on bonuses. ~$70k in 401(k) and $35k in cash savings. $100k in company stock. We own our condo and have no other debt.

At 30 I finished grad school and basically had no money. I started a new job and made $77K.

I’m now 37 and married.
-I have a personal 401k balance of $170K
-I have a pension that will kick out $1400/month at age 59, if I quit my job today. I plan on staying here longer, so that amount will only grow.
-I max out 401k ($19K/year) and contribute full amount to a Roth IRA via Backdoor ($5.5k/year).
-My wife has about $120K in various retirement accounts and another $90K in liquid cash (don’t get me started on this...)
-We now own a decent house in WOTP DC, have about $140K of equity in a home now valued at $955K.
-We are also landlords and take in about $26K in rental income each year.

My point? It gets better. Be diligent, plug away at saving. We always pay ourselves first through savings. Don’t buy a lot of crap. Don’t blow $5K on a vacation, keep it cheaper. Get jobs that have potentially for income growth.

31 and 33, hhi 180k, savings 10k, 401k 200k.

How old are you? What’s your HHI? How much do you have in savings?

We are 30 and 32. Hhi 152k. Savings across the board probably 15k